Chapter 10 The Library Manager (LIB)

The Microsoft Library Manager (LIB) creates, organizes, and maintains standard libraries. Standard libraries are collections of compiled or assembled object modules that provide a common set of useful routines and data. You use these libraries to provide your program with the routines and data at link time. After you have linked a program to a library, the program can use a routine or data item exactly as if it were included in the program.

With LIB you can create a library file, add modules to a library, and delete or replace them. You can combine libraries into one library file and copy or move a module to a separate object file. You can also produce a listing of all public symbols in the library modules.

LIB works with several kinds of files:

Object files in the Microsoft Relocatable Object-Module Format (OMF), which is based on the Intel 8086 OMF

Standard libraries in Microsoft library format

Import libraries created by the Microsoft Import Library Manager (IMPLIB)

286 XENIXÒ archives and Intel-style libraries

Summary: There is a difference between an object file and an object module.

This chapter distinguishes between an “object file” and an “object module.” An object file is an independent file that can have a full path and extension (usually .OBJ). An object module is an object file that has been incorporated into a library. Object modules in the library have only base names. For example, B:\RUN\SORT.OBJ is an object-file name, while SORT is an object-module name.